Q&A with Robin York, author of Deeper

If you follow @piatkusentice on Twitter, you’ll know we haven’t been as excited about a novel as we are about Deeper by Robin York in a long time. Deeper is available to download from 28th January (less than 3 weeks to go!), so in the meantime we thought we’d provide you with a little insight into Robin York’s world with this author Q&A. Enjoy!

What are you reading at the moment?

I just finished Kate Meader’s All Fired Up, a contemporary culinary romance set in Chicago between a recovering anorexic party planner heroine and the Irish pastry chef who she accidentally marries in Las Vegas. Whoops! It was a great airplane read for my recent flight to Boston, and now I just need to find a few minutes to get to the happy ending.

What are you writing at the moment?

I’m actually wrapping up the sequel to Deeper this month, so it’s all West and Caroline, all the time! It’s been so much fun visiting these characters again. I’m not supposed to talk much about the details, but I can tell you it’s called Harder and … yeah. Things get harder. But then better! And West and Caroline will get their happy ending. Eventually.

Who are your inspirations?

Oh, I have so many! I’ve been reading Barbara Samuel lately, really admiring her characters and the depth of emotion she gets into her stories. I am a huge fan (and friend) of Molly O’Keefe — her Boys of Bishop and Crooked Creek Ranch series are fantastic. I love Charlotte Stein’s New Adult erotic romance Sheltered. And Cara McKenna’s erotic romances are some of my very favorites, particularly After Hours, Curio, and Ruin Me.

Have you always wanted to be a writer?

No. I always liked the idea of being a writer, but past age twelve or so I didn’t write. I had this notion that writers had ideas for books and stories, and I didn’t have any ideas, so I supposed that meant I wasn’t suited to being a writer. It was only when I began reading a lot of romance that I began thinking of the romance structure as being something I could build a story onto. That is, I hoped that perhaps I only needed a small seed of an idea to get started, and then the book would grow into itself. This didn’t actually happen, but I enjoyed writing that first book so much that I kept going and learned an important lesson, which is that to write, you only need enough to begin. You can make decisions to deepen your characters and figure out your story as you go along. And in fact, a lot of character-driven writers don’t have or need big plots in their heads. The plot is usually, for me, something that comes from the characters once I’ve figured them out.

Five books to cure the January blues

Barbara Samuel, The Sleeping Night — A sultry, emotional interracial romance set in the U.S. South immediately following the Second World War. Read this one for the heat, for the letters about cake (which aren’t really letters about cake), and for Samuel’s unforgettable characters.

Cara McKenna, After Hours — A young woman takes her first real nursing job on an inpatient psychiatric ward, where she’s in over her head — and that’s before she meets orderly Kelly Robak. He’s tough and competent and frankly kind of scary, but their attraction is off the charts. This is a very sexy erotic romance story set against a bleak backdrop, with complex and interesting characters. Really stunning. Good for if you want to kind of wallow around in the winter bleakness a bit before you get your happy ending.

Theresa Weir, Girl with the Cat Tattoo — Here’s one to make you smile. Written in cat point of view — yes! cat point of view! — this quirky story explores the romance between a grieving children’s librarian and a cop who’s falling for her but can’t tell her the truth. Also, the cat’s really likable. And I’m not even a cat person.

Delphine Dryden, Gossamer Wing — A clever, fun steampunk historical romance spy story. Need I say more? Okay, I’ll say more — there’s also a marriage of convenience, a transatlantic voyage, travel, submarines, ear implants, and a tiny little airship. Oh! And romance. Including some of the steamiest sex scenes … well, let’s just say you won’t be cold, January or no January.

Charlotte Stein, Sheltered — If you’re looking for something short and intense and very, very steamy, you can’t beat Stein’s New Adult erotic romance about what happens when a sheltered heroine falls for the drug dealer next door. It’s a story of sexual, emotional, and romantic awakening, with a poignant ending that speaks to the rebirth of hope in both characters’ lives.

Deeper is available to buy in ebook from 28th January. To read an extract, click here.